Depth In Stereograms Research Articles

Depth Perception in Virtual Reality Systems: Effect of Screen Distance, Environment Richness and Display Factors

Viewing a scene on a screen display differs greatly from viewing it in the real world. The visual information is conveyed via a flat screen at a fixed distance, and this screen distance can influence how viewers perceive depth in stereograms in conventional stereoscopic displays. This study investigated whether screen distance influences perceived depth in Virtual Reality (VR) systems providing additional motion parallax information. Participants adjusted the depth of a vertical dihedron displayed as a random-dot stereogram. In a first experiment, the stimulus was presented either alone in a gray untextured background or in a cue-rich environment. We found that despite the extra motion parallax information in VR systems compared to conventional stereo-displays, physical screen distance still affected depth perception substantially at longer simulated distances. However, the effect lessened when observers were immersed in a rich and structured environment, possibly allowing them to use other depth cues. A second experiment assessed the influence of potentially potent display-related factors (resolution, display orientation, luminance non-uniformity, and specular reflection), as well as the effect of accommodation-vergence (A-V) conflict size. Depth perception was compared between a Head-Mounted Display (HMD) and an L-shaped system, and between a CAVE and an L-shaped system. These comparisons between CAVE-like VR systems and HMDs revealed that A-V conflict and inclusion of a rich environment were the major factors impacting depth perception. These results have practical and methodological implications for the reliable use of VR systems, especially where accurate depth-matching is involved.

Depth scaling in phantom and monocular gap stereograms using absolute distance information

The present study aimed to investigate whether the visual system scales apparent depth from binocularly unmatched features by using absolute distance information. In Experiment 1 we examined the effect of convergence on perceived depth in phantom stereograms [Gillam, B., & Nakayama, K. (1999). Quantitative depth for a phantom surface can be based on cyclopean occlusion cues alone. Vision Research, 39, 109–112.], monocular gap stereograms [Pianta, M. J., & Gillam, B. J. (2003a). Monocular gap stereopsis: manipulation of the outer edge disparity and the shape of the gap. Vision Research, 43, 1937–1950.] and random dot stereograms. In Experiments 2 and 3 we examined the effective range of viewing distances for scaling the apparent depths in these stereograms. The results showed that: (a) the magnitudes of perceived depths increased in all stereograms as the estimate of the viewing distance increased while keeping proximal and/or distal sizes of the stimuli constant, and (b) the effective range of viewing distances was significantly shorter in monocular gap stereograms. The first result indicates that the visual system scales apparent depth from unmatched features as well as that from horizontal disparity, while the second suggests that, at far distances, the strength of the depth signal from an unmatched feature in monocular gap stereograms is relatively weaker than that from horizontal disparity.

Accommodation to perceived depth in stereotests

SummaryThe question of whether the eye may accommodate to the stimulus provided by apparent depth in stereograms is considered theoretically in relation to the magnitudes of the disparities and viewing distances found in typical clinical stereotests. It is concluded that, for the relevant range of disparities (≤2000 arc sec), any shift in accommodation is likely to be small (≤0.15 D). An experimental study with two different clinical stereotests (Lang, TNO) confirms this prediction.

Accommodation to perceived depth in stereotests

The question of whether the eye may accommodate to the stimulus provided by apparent depth in stereograms is considered theoretically in relation to the magnitudes of the disparities and viewing distances found in typical clinical stereotests. It is concluded that, for the relevant range of disparities (≤2000 arc sec), any shift in accommodation is likely to be small (≤0.15 D). An experimental study with two different clinical stereotests (Lang, TNO) confirms this prediction.

The analogy between stereo depth and brightness.

Apparent depth in stereograms exhibits various simultaneous-contrast and induction effects analogous to those reported in the luminance domain. This behavior suggests that stereo depth, like brightness, is reconstructed, ie recovered from higher-order spatial derivatives or differences of the original signal. The extent to which depth is analogous to brightness is examined. There are similarities in terms of contrast effects but dissimilarities in terms of the lateral inhibition effects traditionally attributed to underlying spatial-differentiation operators.

The computation of disparity and depth in stereograms

Presentation d'informations sur le calcul de la disparite retinienne et de la profondeur pour un stereogramme, et discussion des implications qui en resultent pour la recherche sur les processus perceptifs